Reviews tagging 'Medical trauma'

The Vegetarian by Han Kang

150 reviews

tilder's review

challenging dark emotional reflective sad tense fast-paced

5.0

A feminist piece about two sisters and the darkness they share. A testament to patriarchal structures within families and the health system, Kang supplies ample commentary on the nuance of mental health treatment. I reccomend this book to someone who needs a jolt back to the present, beautiful prose and sharp horror this book checks all the boxes of modern magical realism. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Body horror, Eating disorder, Emotional abuse, Gore, Infidelity, Mental illness, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Suicidal thoughts, Toxic relationship, Forced institutionalization, Blood, Vomit, Cannibalism, Medical trauma, Suicide attempt, Abandonment, and Injury/Injury detail

libellumartinae's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark inspiring reflective fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5

Allora questo libro è la definizione di 'fever dream', perché ammetto che non ci ho capito tantissimo, ma ho trovato molto interessanti le diverse analisi riguardanti i temi discussi. E' un libro decisamente forte e intenso, ma lo stile è molto ben fatto e interessante. Voglio leggere di più di questa scrittrice, di sicuro. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Ableism, Addiction, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Body horror, Body shaming, Bullying, Confinement, Cursing, Emotional abuse, Gore, Rape, Self harm, Sexism, Sexual assault, Suicide, Forced institutionalization, Blood, Medical content, Grief, Religious bigotry, Medical trauma, Suicide attempt, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Alcohol, and Injury/Injury detail

kat_jack's review

challenging dark emotional reflective sad tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Infidelity, Mental illness, Self harm, Toxic relationship, Suicide attempt, and Schizophrenia/Psychosis

Moderate: Eating disorder, Misogyny, Sexual assault, Forced institutionalization, Blood, Vomit, Medical content, and Medical trauma

Minor: Alcoholism, Cursing, and Sexual content

leilorenzo's review against another edition

challenging dark reflective sad tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

This one packs a punch. Rather, multiple ones. There are MANY trigger warnings, check them out before starting it. 
It was interesting reading a piece from a South Korean author (I believe it is a first for me) and I enjoyed how the culture was portrayed throughout the book. 
We are shown the slow degeneration of the FMC from three perspectives: her husband's (and a bit of hers), her brother in law's and, finally, her sister's. It deals with themes such as family, nature and humanity, mental illness, being an outcast, and more.

It is very well executed, but I don't think I'll be reading it again.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Eating disorder, Physical abuse, Rape, Self harm, Sexual assault, Violence, Medical content, Medical trauma, and Suicide attempt

Moderate: Gore

Minor: Infidelity, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , and Abandonment

snarkycrafter's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional reflective sad medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

This is Lit Fic, and a very good one at that. But as with all Lit Fic, there are many layers that caused you to critically think and discover the true meaning of the novel. It’s a great book, but not for those who like to have everything spelled out. This book requires you to uncover the meaning of things, the purpose of certain literary choices. It’s not an enjoyable, fluffy read. You will be uncomfortable, you will be confused, you won’t know how you feel sometimes. That’s how I felt, and yet I could not deny that I saw myself in certain things. 

I think it’s a very interesting and compelling commentary on gender, norms and societal expectations (especially for women) in South Korean culture.

“Her calm acceptance of all these things made her seem to him something sacred. Whether human, animal, or plant she could not be called a person…” 

So dehumanizing of women. Only sacred as long as we remain submissive and pliant. 

Her brother in law wants to film her having sex with a man. And is talking about it like it’s a done deal, “if he were to choose a man to have sex with his sister in law it couldn’t be him[self]…” he assumes simply that she’ll be ok with it if he corners her into the situation.

“It’s your body. You can treat it however you please. The only area where you’re free to do just as you like, and even that doesn’t turn out just as you want it.”

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Gore, Infidelity, Mental illness, Misogyny, Self harm, Sexism, Suicidal thoughts, Forced institutionalization, Blood, and Medical trauma

vilmuska's review against another edition

dark mysterious sad tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

2.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Eating disorder, Mental illness, Self harm, Sexual content, Forced institutionalization, Blood, Medical content, Medical trauma, Suicide attempt, and Schizophrenia/Psychosis

Moderate: Body horror, Child abuse, Gore, Physical abuse, Sexual assault, Vomit, and Injury/Injury detail

Minor: Abandonment

adrizeuza's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional sad tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5

I feel like this book usually draws very extreme reactions, but for me it was okay! Certainly engaging, I kept wanting to pick it up and see where the story was going. Horrible men, and desperate women that have become desensitized to their awful lives and are on the brink of burn out, basically, but written in a way that felt compelling and authentic, instead of phoned in as is the case with a lot of books in a similar vein that have come out in recent years. The last section felt dragged out though. I think overall the main theme (the violence we inflict on each other so casually) was interesting and explored in a very original way (especially for the time), but also a bit superficial and repetitive... I felt like in every scene where I was hoping to have a conclusion drawn that made me go "wow", it just ended abruptly and we switched to another moment.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Eating disorder, Infidelity, Sexual content, Toxic relationship, and Suicide attempt

Moderate: Sexism, Suicidal thoughts, and Medical trauma

christineazopf's review

challenging dark reflective sad tense slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.75

From a literary perspective this book is challenging and thought provoking. There’s a lot of ways to analyze the text. I would not recommend to someone for a casual read

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Body horror, Eating disorder, Infidelity, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Rape, Self harm, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Suicidal thoughts, Forced institutionalization, Blood, Vomit, Medical content, Medical trauma, Suicide attempt, and Injury/Injury detail

karmachamillionaire's review against another edition

dark emotional sad slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Domestic abuse, Eating disorder, Emotional abuse, Infidelity, Mental illness, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Rape, Self harm, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Medical trauma, and Suicide attempt

Moderate: Body shaming, Chronic illness, Confinement, Suicidal thoughts, Forced institutionalization, and Blood

Minor: Vomit

carojust's review against another edition

dark mysterious reflective sad medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.75

It's a given that the hype behind a book really dilutes the experience of reading it, as I kept expecting the wrong things from "The Vegetarian." It wasn't shocking material like reviewers say, but quite the opposite -- a delicate, honest portrait of two sisters dissolving from the construct of reality, and the lost men tethered to them.

This short book is told in three parts, from the perspectives of Yeong-hye's husband, her brother-in-law and her older sister, In-hye. Yeong-hye is the vegetarian, her decision to fiercely avoid meat ends up disrupting her loveless marriage and her already strained relationship with her family. It offends them. Her wasted, bra-less body offends them.

I appreciate the metaphors and message of this story, and there's a lot to deconstruct. Considering the vitriol that comes with any mention of feminism, and women continuing to lack agency and safety, this book's horror feels so dampened by today's reality.

The way this ends will leave you emptier than how it starts, so be warned if you're not into that.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Body horror, Domestic abuse, Eating disorder, Emotional abuse, Infidelity, Mental illness, Misogyny, Panic attacks/disorders, Physical abuse, Self harm, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Suicidal thoughts, Forced institutionalization, Blood, Medical content, Medical trauma, Suicide attempt, and Injury/Injury detail